About the Night Paper Project by Matt Hill

NIGHT PAPER is a fine art project that combines cut paper art with night photography. The result is a surreal combination of the dilation of time and the beauty of people from all walks of life and all ages dressed in only paper art fashions.

NIGHT PAPER

is a self-funded fine art project that combines cut paper art with night photography. The result is a surreal combination of the dilation of time and the beauty of people from all walks of life and all ages dressed in only paper art fashions. see gallery

CURRENT:I will soon be seeking a gallery to represent me, and a publisher to create a beautiful coffee-table book. I continue to shoot monthly, and the project is gaining notice and press.

HISTORY:The NIGHT PAPER project was born over five years ago when I started considering what would happen if I combined the surreal (un)sensibilities of my paper art with the otherworldly qualities of night photography and long exposures.

I spent quite some time thinking about how I can both create fashions out of paper and conduct a shoot with models donning nothing but the paper in sometimes strange locations.. at night.

July, 2012: one of the first paper fashions

In the summer of 2012, I spent a month on art sabbatical in Denver, CO and decided to finally begin what I had so long turn over and over in my head. The reality of organizing the first shoot was daunting. But in the end, it was an exhilarating process that sparked even more ideas and a personal promise to do at least one of these, if not more, per month until I have filled out the project as much as possible, following all of the possibilities.

In the ensuing months, this has turned into a project fueled by the spirit of volunteerism. What started with one volunteer has turned into many. With each shoot, I am contacted by more who wish to become part of the project.

GET INVOLVEDI have no preconceptions about age, size or anything else and will consider anyone for the project.

PROCESS I create a unique paper fashion each model on each shoot. Every volunteer model has the option to keep their mask and paper garment if they choose. I ask for a small set of measurements to make sure that the mask and other pieces fit well, and conduct one fitting usually about one week before the shoot.

As with my 2D cut paper art, I do not sketch my designs ahead of time, I begin with a loose idea of how I want the paper to rest and drape on their body, I've tried many ideas and have many more.

Interesting to me is that I've never studied fashion, and thinking through how the paper and bodies will combine while also thinking about lighting and environment has been a constant learning experience.

Each outfit takes an average of eight hours to create, and sometimes revisions or starting over is necessary after the fitting.

Location scouting is also a constant pursuit, as is managing the volunteers' information and arranging the shoots.

I'd like to thank the long list of supporters, guest photo assistants, and my girlfriend and Production Assistant, Mabel Bermejo. Without you, these would not be what they are.

Below is a Timelaspe showing the creation of the cut paper fashion for Heather Whatever during our snowy February, 2012 photo shoot.